Lootman wrote:bungeejumper wrote:Ahem, back to the topic: I think we're in danger of drifting into absolutist territory once we start saying that every knock and every bumper scrape needs to be declared to the insurance company. There can't be many of us who haven't cursed and got the rattle can out, or shelled out £100 to ChipsAway to salve our battered self-respect. I've restored/replaced a couple of door mirrors which had been carelessly clouted by oncoming cars. Should I have made a claim even for a broken mirror glass? There surely has to be a commonsense threshold somewhere?
The "commonsense threshold" for me is to ask three questions:
1) Is anyone injured?
2) Did the police get involved?
3) Is any party to the incident going to make an insurance claim or take legal action?
If the answer to all three questions is "No" then I would not notify my insurer.
What you do is up to you, but your “commonsense threshold” is neither here nor there. All that matters is what your insurer’s policy wording states. Of course you could take the view that if the answer to your questions is “No” then there is unlikely to be any evidence of your failure to declare, but that’s different.
I’d also point out that you have no way of knowing 3/. The other party to a little bump with no damage done might log the accident with their insurer with no intent of making any claim, providing your reg number. You don’t do the same. Insurers are very good at sharing information. And then you’re screwed. Knowing how crafty insurers are, they’d probably not even tell you, but just pocket the premium knowing that you’ve gone and voided your insurance by not fessing up. Then if you have a proper accident and maintain you’ve had no accidents, it’s fraud conviction time!
I know you used to work in the City. It feels like you picked up some of the bad old day habits there. If you think you won’t be caught, anything goes. I recall some similar comments about lockdown rules.
Insurers are sharp elbowed when it comes to claims. Best to be fully open with them. Of course if you scrape your own wing mirror on your own garage door, no issues. But any accident you need to report to them.
https://www.beckettandco.co.uk/notifyin ... -insurers/“As an example, a friend was involved in a very minor bump with another car. The drivers checked the vehicles and agreed that neither vehicle had sustained any damage. Satisfied that there was no harm done, the drivers each went on their way. My friend didn’t report the accident to her insurers: in fact, because of the minor nature of the incident it didn’t even occur to her to do so. Her motor policy was subsequently renewed by her insurers and a few months later she was involved in another, more serious accident, which did cause damage to her vehicle and for which she wished to claim on her policy.
She reported the accident to her insurers and in the course of the conversation with her insurers she was asked if she had been involved in any other accidents. In response to this question my friend told the insurers about the minor bump in which she had been involved a few months earlier. Imagine her shock when the insurers informed her that, as a result of her non-disclosure of the previous accident her policy was void from inception and she was not therefore covered in respect of the damage to her car.”
But ultimately, your life, your risk. It’s just not a risk I would want to take. The whole issue with insurance is that insurers are happy to take your money, then if they need to pay our a much larger claim they have the incentive to comb through the facts looking for reasons to (lawfully) reject it.